“They’re outgoing, confident dog that would approach people. If they got turned around or lost, they would be looking for people,” Baird said.

“Out of five dogs they’re not the pair that you would ever think would go missing together. It just seems odd that out of five dogs, the two that don't like each other and the two that are people-friendly and the two that are pure-bred, are gone.”

Buddy and Maddy were last seen playing in a neighbour’s backyard on Dec. 29.

When the dogs didn’t return home, the Bairds got worried and the search began.

“We searched down in the ravine and in the bushes until 1 a.m. in the morning. The next day we had 30 people come out looking for them,” Baird said.

The two animals are part of a growing number of dogs that have gone missing from homes in the northeastern outskirts of Edmonton since December.

That’s got some residents on edge.

“Four of these dogs were taken out of fenced yards. A four and a half-year-old St. Bernard who had never left her property in four-and-a-half years goes missing with the dog right across the street on the same night at the same time. How does that happen?” Baird said.

“We’re thinking, is someone stealing these dogs?”

The Baird’s have put up lost dog posters and are also turning to social media to help locate Buddy and Maddy.

“Our dogs are a part of our life. We are really animal people. They are so part of the family,” she said.

Fifty dogs have been reported missing in Winnipeg in the past month, but police there aren’t treating the cases as suspicious.

Edmonton police say they aren’t treating these missing dogs as suspicious either, but it does have the Edmonton Humane Society reissuing a key message.

“If there's any way at all that you could try to confine your pets on a regular basis in some sort of yard that has a fence, it is always best for their outcome, for their well-being,” said Shawna Randolph with the Edmonton Humane Society.

“It all boils down to making sure that you’re always watching your pet, just as you would your children… there are so many hazards, not just people, but anything that can happen with a pet.”

The society is also encouraging pet owners to microchip – something the Bairds are relying on.

“We think the public needs to know. If you are buying dogs and they are not from breeders then you need to check microchips and you need to find out who you're buying your dogs from,” Baird said.

With both dogs requiring medical attention, the family hopes putting out their need on social media, and offering a $4,000 reward will bring their Buddy and Maddy home safely, and perhaps locate the other missing animals.

“Dogs are part of your family and even those people who aren’t dog people, if they’ll post a sign, or talk to someone about Buddy or Maddy or other dogs that have gone missing,” Baird said.

“They say it takes a village to raise a child, I think it’s going to take a city to bring back a missing dog and the only way to do that is to get people to talk.”

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Dogs Buddy and Maddy went missing on Dec. 29. Their owners say the two dogs are part of a growing number of dogs that have gone missing from acreage areas on the outskirts of Edmonton.

The Bairds believe someone may be stealing dogs, including two of their own, after discovering more than a dozen dogs have gone missing in the outskirts of Edmonton since December.

Buddy, a two-year-old male yellow lab went missing on Dec. 29. His owner believes someone may be stealing and reselling the dogs, and if that's the case, is urging new dog owners to get their pets scanned fro a microchip.

Maddy is an eight-month-old female bulldog who went missing on Dec. 29. Her owners have created a Facebook Page and YouTube video in the hopes of finding Maddy and their other dog Buddy. They believe someone may have stolen the two dogs.